Jonathan Crane (Arkhamverse)

Remnants of Gotham, I have messages for you all. To the vandals who stayed behind to pick the still-warm flesh from Gotham's bones: have your fun. You are under my protection. To the cowards quaking behind the police department's walls: you will not be spared. And to Batman, I have already won. Emptied your city with a vial of toxin and a few threatening words. That's how little the safety you provided was worth. And when the dawn comes, when Gotham lies in ruins and I turn my gaze to the world beyond, the legend of the Batman will be worth nothing at all.

— Scarecrow ^src

Jonathan Crane is the Scarecrow, an enemy of Batman who uses his knowledge of psychology and chemistry to spread fear.

History

Origin

Taunted and bullied in his youth, Jonathan Crane vowed to overcome his fears through the study of psychology and biochemistry. Kicked out of his university for experimenting on human subjects, Crane adopted the identity of the Scarecrow and armed himself with a specialized fear-inducing gas that makes a person's deepest fears become frighteningly real. His ongoing criminal reign of terror makes him one of Batman's most psychologically dangerous foes.

Road to Arkham

Main article: Batman: Arkham Asylum: The Road to Arkham

An anonymous tip to Scarecrow's activities noted in the patient interviews in the form of a vial of the Scarecrow's Fear Gas was left at police headquaters. Using this, Batman was able to create an antidote. The Scarecrow was found by Batman using his Fear Gas to attack his state-sponsored psychologist. Batman apprehended the Scarecrow and locked him back up into Arkham Asylum. It was revealed that the vial came from Dr. Kellerman. Even though Scarecrow was back in Arkham, he continued his plans from a secret loft hidden in the Intensive Treatment Center, plotting his next move and even getting his hands on the blueprints of Arkham Asylum.

Arkham Asylum

Main article: Batman: Arkham Asylum

The Batman is subjected to nightmares induced by inhaling fear gas, in each of which he confronts a giant version of Scarecrow who torments the Batman as he navigates his way through an obstacle course to reach the Bat signal in order to end the nightmare. In The Final Nightmare, Batman is presented as a patient brought into the mental facility by the Joker and is examined by the Scarecrow prior to the Joker shooting the Dark Knight with a bullet, only to soon dig himself out of a grave. As Batman reaches the end of the last nightmare, he is found grasping the real Scarecrow, who is perplexed by the fact that his opponent was able to overcome nightmares that would have broken weaker men. He is later spotted trying to dump a particularly strong fear toxin into Gotham's water supply but he is dragged into the deep by Killer Croc.

Arkham City

Main article: Batman: Arkham City

Crane, having survived his encountered with Croc, began to occupy a small boat near the entrance to Joker's Funland where he occupies his time torturing captured Joker thugs, a hobby funded by the Falcone Crime Family.

Arkham Knight

Main article: Batman: Arkham Knight

Scarecrow returns to Gotham City with the mysterious Arkham Knight and the former assassin Deathstroke to turn Gotham into a city of fear and unmask Batman. He and his alliance contacted Simon Stagg to make a dispersing fear toxin device called the Cloudburst. After Jason Todd failed Crane, he took Robin and Commissioner Gordon to Arkham Asylum so Batman could surrender. Crane gave Batman fear toxin so his Joker counterpart would be free. Crane exposed Batman's identity as Bruce Wayne to the news. Crane was stung by the fear toxin and got sent to GCPD. His actions made Batman commence the Knightfall Protocol.

Powers and Abilities

Abilities

Genius Level Intellect: Crane is a master strategist and manipulator. He has planned out several contingency plans and hideouts for future crimes.
- Psychiatry: Crane is a gifted psychiatrist in the study of anxiety disorders, specifically phobias. He is able to unnerve people by making them see everyday things as a product of fear, such as going to a doctor (fear of death), marriage (dying alone), having children (leaving nothing worthwhile behind).
- Chemistry: He is a brilliant chemist as he concocted his ingenious fear-toxin.
  - Toxicology: Crane is an expert on poisons as well, specifically ones that affect the mind more than the body.
Intimidation: Crane is able to scare people even without the use of his toxin, due to either his reputation, mask and (later) his disfigured face.

Other Characteristics

Chiropteraphobia: Suffers a chronic fear of bats and Batman.
Lack of Fear: Due to regularly being exposed to his Fear Toxin, Crane gradually began to lose his ability to feel fear. As a result, he became increasingly reckless with how he went about his fights with Batman, resulting in their final confrontation.
Fear Gas: Though Crane does possess a great deal of resistance to his normal Fear Toxin, he is not immune to the batch he uses in Arkham Knight. Once injected with it, it broke Scarecrow's mind, leaving him a fearful, blubbering mess.
Monstrous Appearance
Restricted Mobility

Paraphernalia

Equipment

Scarecrow's Fear Toxin: A chemical concoction of his own design, which causes those infected with it to see their worst fears; in the worst case scenario, the victim would die. Simon Stagg noted that it could be used to cure depression and turn enemy armies against themselves.
Injection Needles: As his gas has a hit and miss effect as it can be evaded, Scarecrow wears a modified hand-brace that holds four syringes of Fear Toxin on his fingers. The syringes are linked to three stores of Fear Toxin on the brace.
- After the events at the asylum, Crane designed a new brace, which had the syringes on four claws he could trigger by clenching his fist.
Trench-coat: In Arkham Knight, Scarecrow wears a coat to hold extra vials of his Fear Toxin.
Leg-brace: After Croc grabbed his leg, the bone in it broke. As a result, Scarecrow now has to walk with a leg-brace.

Transportation

Militia Helicopter: As the client who hired them, Crane is able to come and go via their transport.

Weapons

Gun: Crane does keep a gun on him if he needs to kill someone without wishing to waste his fear toxin.

Notes

This version of the character is exclusive to the continuity of the Arkhamverse video game series and is an adaptation of Scarecrow. The original character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane and first appeared in World's Finest #3.
Scarecrow was voiced by Dino Andrade for the video game Batman: Arkham Asylum, John Noble for the video game Batman: Arkham Knight, and Christian Lanz for the animated movie Batman: Assault on Arkham.

Trivia

The Scarecrow's final nightmare in Arkham Asylum is first presented as a fake glitch in the game that makes it appear to reset to the opening scene.